What are the benefits and challenges of using a paid-owned-earned media framework?

In my experience, paid media stands as a crucial pillar within the paid-owned-earned media framework, offering distinct advantages and challenges. Paid media, such as social media ads or sponsored content, provides immediate visibility and targeted reach, essential for launching new products or amplifying messages. Its measurable outcomes enable optimization for better performance. However, the challenge lies in the increasing cost and the need for continual investment to maintain visibility. Balancing creative content with strategic placement is key to maximizing ROI, requiring a deep understanding of audience behaviors and platform algorithms.

Pulling on one lever of the PESO model (because let's not forget the 'S' - shared media) in isolation only gets you so far. But, pulling on a lever to strengthen another…now, that's a different story. I see this all the time: a company gets a great earned media hit, everyone's excited for a minute and that's that. Not enough companies think about using paid social media advertising to amplify the earned hit. But they should. Earned brings the credibility, paid extends its reach to your target audience - one strengthens the other.

Is social media really owned media if your account can be revoked or reach tanked at any moment? Paid-Owned-Earned framework lacks resolution and leads to pitfalls in planning, analysis, and performance. The PESO framework does a better job accounting for the modern media mix and intricacies of social media. Under PESO, social media is "shared media". You own the content, and to a degree, the profile/handle. But you certainly don't own the algorithms, the network, or the servers, which are only "shared" with you, and may help you position your content to be shared. Website, lists, your domain - you do not own the underlying infrastructure, but can migrate to equivalent in the event of change. Not possible with social media!

Owned media isn't just a platform for broadcasting your message; it's a space to cultivate relationships with your audience. By creating valuable, engaging content and fostering two-way conversations, you can turn casual visitors into loyal brand advocates. This community-building aspect of owned media is often overlooked but can be a powerful driver of long-term growth.

In my years leading marketing teams, I've found that earned media isn't just about reach—it's about trust. A glowing review from a satisfied customer or a positive mention in a respected publication carries far more weight than any paid advertisement. This "third-party validation" can be a game-changer, especially for startups building brand credibility in a crowded market.

The paid-owned-earned media framework is great for a basic analysis of your media resource allocation ... But it's also over-simplified and doesn't work well for more creative and out-of-the-box media engines 💡 Here are the common pitfalls that we always point out to our partners at Empact Partners 👩🏻🏫 Paid Media: the problem with paid media is that it's addictive. The results come quickly, and yet it's hard to make paid media work consistently in the long term. Owned Media: nothing is truly evergreen. Organic traffic is a liability (that needs constant maintanence!) and not just an asset. Earned Media: you really must earn it, especially if you are getting started with media efforts. Build real relationships — and it'll come.